MASSIVE CITY FOOTBALL FAN CORPS

The art and the work of supporting Columbus soccer.

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I drew this in a sketchbook in 2005, because I was obsessed with stickers on fruit and I liked the Columbus Crew. Wearing a bandana like the Euro fans in Crew Stadium in those days didn't earn you many (or in my case, any) friends. That changed a couple years later. And now they've changed back. Things move in cycles. What is lost will someday be found. Tomorrow is the end of the beginning of the end of the beginning... This is Columbus.
#CrewSC #Columbus #MLSCup #ForColumbus #CoverYourFace #Z

Ladies and gentlemen, if we may ask your indulgence as to wait for a few hours longer, I believe that it will be worth it. Thank you. #CrewSC #Columbus #Ohio

This is what we're celebrating this week. There are those who spend their nights mocking it, but this is the philosophy that got us here. 100% Organic #Columbus. #CrewSC #96NeverQuits #Z #Ohio

"The time to make it happen...now." #CrewSC #CLBvNY #KU15 #96NeverQuits #Z

For Rick and those who did Work #ForColumbus and not for glory before doing the Work was cool. Go #CrewSC. #CLBvNY

They said it couldn't be done, and then we did it. #300000 #CheckEngine #Chrysler

I saw this from the highway, these five flags. So I turned around and went back. #Columbus #CrewSC #FlagCheck #Since96 #Z

There is a field... #Paris

Late Friday afternoon printing at @ecoprintlab under the #CrewSC flag. #Columbus #ShortNorth #Work

The skyline of Columbus is used in a lot of designs. If you're in Columbus, once you notice it, it's kind of everywhere you look. Two of the best uses of the skyline in design are in the Crew Union logo, and in the Nordecke logo.

Relying on the silhouette of a city's skyline as a symbol for that city is a tough idea for me to get behind, because I don't know if a city's skyline really says much about a city other than "Hey, we have a few tall buildings, too." This changes, of course, if there are unique structures that are clearly identifiable in silhouette. The former World Trade Center was certainly a skyscraper that made the skyline of New York City recognizable, and hopefully the future Freedom Tower accomplishes that again. Maybe Chicago's Willis Tower, St. Louis' Gateway Arch, and Seattle's Space Needle make their respective cities' silhouettes recognizable, but there are very few other cities around the country that have buildings that are clearly identifiable by their silhouettes. Look up the skylines of San Diego, Minneapolis, Miami, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nashville, Cleveland, Oakland, Austin, or Houston and see if you can tell which is which. Unless you live in one of those cities, it's not easy.

I imagine the same applies to Columbus. The Leveque Tower is a remarkable and historically important building, and it would make a neat addition (that's a hint for a coming design) on a Columbus Crew badge. Our skyline is stunninglybeautiful in photographs, when the lights are sparkling and our Ohio sky is glowing. The life of the city shows up in those pictures. However, the skyline of Columbus in silhouette, to me, is like seeing the shadow of a loved one, and never getting to see their eyes. It just leaves so much out. Some of our most remarkable buildings aren't skyscrapers. The Ohio Statehouse, Franklin Park Conservatory, The Wexner Center, our libraries, houses of worship, museums, Ohio Stadium, Nationwide Arena, Huntington Park, even Crew Stadium—none of them appear in the skyline. They're just not tall enough. The neat parts of our city are ones that don't jump up, spin around, and do gimmicky tricks like a Space Needle or CN Tower. Crew Stadium doesn't revolve, open and close, or reach high above the horizon—it just produces Dos A Ceros. A building can mean a lot even if it's low to the ground.

Nevertheless, I wanted to do something with the skyline during 28 in 28, and I wanted to come up with something a little different when I did. I thought that the way to do it was not to make it so the skyline was the main feature, but more of an accent. Something that could be dropped from the crest when needed and not be a big deal. I took a half shield, modeled after the Greek soccer club Aris F.C. and made a C in the sky as the tail of a shooting star above the skyline. To give it some life, I created a background glow of lights, which I think are so important when considering Columbus, like I mentioned above.

Anyway, as indifferent as I obviously am regarding the use of the skyline as a symbol of the city and of the Columbus Crew in particular, the skyline could work if it's done creatively. There are definitely creative people around Columbus who can make that happen.

I guess when it comes down to it, I've always supported keeping a low profile.